Burt
by canny-bairn
Summary: JJ returns home to find an empty house. Set nine years after season five and wrote for the Chit Chat Corner's fourth challenge!


_**Disclaimer – I own nothing associated with Criminal Minds!**_

_**This is my attempt for the **__**Chit Chat on Author's Corner Round 4 Pick Your Own Pairing Challenge **__**se**__**t by ilovetvalot and tonnie2001969!**_

_**My chosen pairing was JJ/Hotch and the prompt given was Character A + Character B + A New Puppy. Let me know what you think!**_

...

Silence wasn't something she would usually associate with her house, at least not since Henry was born, but as JJ closed the front door behind her, the experienced agent was faced with an empty home. The sight of school bags, books and coats provided evidence that her children had made it home from school but walking through the living room and into the kitchen no one had yet to appear.

JJ traced her steps back to the foot of the stairs after looking through the kitchen window, to see if anyone was in the garden, but it too, was vacant. "HELLO! IS ANYONE HOME?"

Nothing. Just silence. JJ sighed loudly, the small family had no plans that she knew of and her husband of seven years was always annoyingly punctual from work and always called if the team had taken a case. Pressing the answering machine's play button the only people that had left a message was Rossi, Strauss and one of Henry's friends.

"Okay, weird" JJ mused to herself before picking up her brown handbag she had left in the hallway, to fish out her mobile that often got lost in the jungle that was the rubbish she had stuffed in the expensive leather Mulberry, that her husband had bought for her birthday. Standing in the living room JJ pressed speed dial only to immediately hang up when the front door bounced open with a bang, followed by a clatter of footsteps running into the front room.

"Has nobody heard of leaving a message? I was about to send out a search party" JJ called out as her five year old daughter, Grace, skipped into the room first, colliding with the petite blonde with force as she wrapped her small arms round her mom's waist. "Mommy!"

"Hi sugarplum, where have you guys been?" JJ kissed the top of her daughter's blonde head, her appearance may be all JJ but her mannerisms were her fathers.

"With Daddy silly" Grace gave her an overly stern look then giggled as her older brother barged into the room, with a little puppy in his arms.

"Mom, look, we got a puppy from Uncle Derek" An eleven year old Henry, beamed as he struggled to hold on to the small squirming dog.

JJ stared at her two children as they fussed over the distressed animal. "Wait. Uncle Derek?"

"Don't look at me, it was Dad's idea" Jack strolled into the living room behind his younger siblings, wearily eyeing his step mom as she stood with her hand on her hip.

"Where is your father?" JJ asked in exasperation

Jack looked behind him, expecting to his tall father standing strong however, the profiler just leaned around the corner, almost shielding himself from JJ's response to the new puppy. "I sent the kid's in first, thought it would be safer" Hotch called out causing Jack to burst into laughter.

Hotch entered the room timidly, his amused gaze switching between his wife and his teenage son as JJ tried to contain her shock. "You got them a dog?"

Sensing the tension, Jack took hold of his little sister's hand and guided the pair out of the room. "Come on guys, let's take Burt outside"

"Burt?" JJ asked in a sigh as Hotch walked towards her.

Kissing his wife's cheek, he shrugged before picking up the discarded school bags that had been flung onto the floor after the school run. "Burt the dog"

"Of course, you let Gracie name it" JJ smirked as her husband turned and grinned in response.

"Grace and Henry named her, they looked at me with your wide powder blue eyes and I caved" Placing the school bags on the side table at the bottom of the stirs, the couple kept the conversation going as they walked into their kitchen.

"And I'm sure Jack didn't try to stop you and bring you to your senses either" JJ sat on one of the stools that surrounded the large island in the middle of the kitchen as Hotch poured them both a glass of orange juice.

Passing over the counter a glass of OJ, Hotch frowned. "What are you trying to say?"

JJ scoffed. "The kids have you wrapped around their little fingers. You know, ten years ago, you wouldn't have been such a softy"

Hotch smiled warmly, "What can I say? You've changed me Jennifer Hotchner"

"I don't like dogs" JJ stated bluntly. When he was younger she had no problem with animals, but since the fateful case in Georgia when she was forced to defend herself against three rampant dogs and one of her closet friends was kidnapped, dogs had become a source of her nightmares and she knew Hotch was aware of that.

"Dogs are a man's best friend" The unit chief stated dryly as he sat opposite the blonde and watched his wife roll her eyes. "Ha, men really messed up there"

"What do you mean? Dogs are loyal creatures" Hotch asked curiously as JJ smirked while playing with her engagement ring as she spoke. "Diamonds are a girls best friend, we chose sparkly and expensive, men chose a mutt that chases its own tail"

Chuckling the profiler stood to check the kids in the garden through the large French patio doors, before turning back to his wife of seven years. "Burt's a girl so maybe we could get her a diamond collar?"

"Burt's a girl?" JJ leaned back in her seat, a confused expression emerged on her face.

"Henry thought it'd be ironic and Gracie liked that it began with a 'B', apparently it's her favourite letter this week" He explained with a small smile appearing on his lips, the same small and proud smile that materializes every time he talks about any of his three children.

"She's your kid" JJ quips when Hotch stretched his hand out towards her, to bring his wife closer to him, so they can look into the garden together. "Come on, look at the kids, they adore her"

JJ moaned as they watched Henry and Jack pass a soccer ball to each other as Grace and Burt tried to chase the small object. "You realise that it'll chew everything we own and we'll end up being the one that has to take it for walks and clear up after it..."

"But Burt makes the kids happy" Hotch whispered in her ear and pouted.

Chuckling, the Pennsylvanian shook her head. "You know you can look at me with those eyes and pout all you want..." Hotch wrapped his arms around her slim waist so he was behind her and kissed her neck slowly. "Mmm Aaron, you know I..."

Hotch kissed her softly behind her ear and whispered again, "It's just a puppy JJ, a small, chocolate brown Labrador, called Burt. A defenceless little puppy"

"That will turn into a big dog and the kids will get bored..." Sharply Hotch turned JJ who gasped in his arms as he pressed her into the kitchen counter. As she wrapped her arms around his neck, Hotch kissed her firmly until both struggled for air, resting her chin on his chest and JJ looked up into his eyes, "You're unrelenting. Fine, you win, looks like we have a new member of the family"

"Well you were talking about wanting another kid" Hotch kissed the tip of her nose and pulled away to pick up his drink.

JJ paused as Hotch concentrated on sipping his drink and reading one of the many school letters that the kid's brought home at the end of the day. "A new puppy isn't a replacement for a baby Aaron"

"Aren't we getting too old to be changing diapers?" Hotch asked but regretted his words the minute his wife's jaw dropped.

JJ walked up to him, fitting her body between his legs and letting her hands rest on his shoulders as they talked. "But clearing up a dogs' mess is fine?"

"I feel like I've started a discussion that I'm not going to be able to get out of" Hotch tilted his head as JJ smirked.

"Well aren't you perceptive this afternoon," she kissed him tenderly and brushed her fingers along his stiff collar, "Why don't you get the kids in and we'll go to the pet store to get some dog stuff. But hun, the baby discussion is not off the table" JJ warned softly and kissed him once more pulling out of his loose hold on her waist.

Hotch watched his wife leave the room and smirked, "Yes dear."

...


End file.
